NaLu Week 2014
by MissRainicorn
Summary: Collection of one-shots I wrote for this year's NaLu Week. The prompt list was: Gift, Vulnerable, Ribbon, Promise, Dare, Effulgence, and Future. Each of the fanfics is inspired or somehow related to the word given as a prompt. Rated T just in case.
1. Day One: Gift

_**First day, first prompt. Not very satisfied with this one, must admit; I feel like I didn't manage to get the feeling and the effect I wanted. But I'm too tired to rewrite it, so here goes.**_

* * *

A day in Fairy Tail wasn't a normal day if there was not a constant ruckus of yelling and laughter and at least three fights, with some added material damage to the building.

But, even when these were the normal standards, there was something unusual today.

Natsu had noticed it. As dense as he was, even _he_ could see it. Something in the atmosphere was different today, particularly around the female members of the guild.

He wouldn't know _what_, though.

Cana looked particularly gloomy. And extra drunk. No one dared to ask what was wrong; everyone knew better than to address Cana when she was in such a state of mind.

As for the rest of the girls, they had this look in their faces. Somewhat... expectant.

They were expecting something?

Juvia's face was a hopeful expectant. Illusion and daydream was written all over it, and you could see her glancing at Gray _way_ too often, with glimmering eyes. Now, _that_ was nothing new; but this time, instead of her coming to him, it looked like she expected him to come to her.

Levy's, on contrast, was a hopeless expectant. Like she wanted something, but knew she wouldn't get it. And yet, she still waited for it. She waited like an idiot, she would've said, if she'd wanted to comment on it. Which she obviously didn't, judging by the way she sank her nose inside a book.

Erza's expression was completely flat. She was eating cake, as always, and ignoring everything else, as always. Erza was good at concealing whatever her emotions were, and yet, you could see expectancy in the way her eyes glanced at the door every now and then. She even sighed from time to time.

Evergreen? She was sitting around with the Raijinshuu, but she also looked like she was expecting something, and by the looks of it, she was getting pretty exasperated. Her long nails mercilessly tapped the table with impatience.

And Lucy.

Lucy was sitting with Levy and Juvia. She said some words to them every now and then, but no one at that table, not even Lucy herself, looked particularly interested in talking. She rested her face in her hand, using the other to put the straw in her mouth and distractedly sip from her orange juice. Her mind was clearly elsewhere, absent from everyone and everything. Lucy was often lost in daydream, Natsu knew, but he'd never seen that look in her eyes before.

She, too, looked like she was waiting. But her waiting was... resigned. Like she was reaching for something she couldn't get to, and she was now waiting for it to come her way, but she didn't really expect it to do so.

Needless to say, Natsu was very much weirded out by all of this. Especially by Lucy, who was so lost in thought, she hadn't even noticed him arriving. Which was very strange, because Natsu had (as always) made a show of his entrance. It creeped him out to go near _that_ table and say hello, so he decided to approach Gray and inquire for some answers.

"Hey, ice-cube."

"Yo, flame-brain" Gray's greeting was nonchalant, but he surely looked uncomfortable. He shifted his weight in his seat, and briefly glanced at Juvia. Natsu couldn't tell whether he wanted to approach her or to run away.

Wow, everyone was acting weird as heck today.

"So... what's up with _them_?" Natsu pointed his thumb at the girls.

The ice mage shrugged. "I've absolutely no idea, and I'm not really sure I wanna know."

"They just... they look _weird_."

"You think so?" Gray glanced at them briefly enough, then shrugged again. "Why don't you go ask them if you're so curious?"

"Ara, ara" a soft voice cooed. They looked back to see Mira, who was serving something to Gajeel (who sat on a table nearby), and smiling at them. "You boys really don't know what today is?"

Gray averted his eyes from her, blushed slightly and mumbled something unintelligible. Natsu, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow and furrowed his lips in utter confusion. "What do you mean, Mira? Today is... uh, February 14th, right?"

"Exactly, Natsu. Which means...?" Mira made a gesture with her hand, encouraging him to continue. But Natsu didn't know what it meant.

"Which means... it's kinda cold?"

Gray gave him a look of surprise, and then bursted into laughter. Mira put a hand to her cheek. "Ara, ara" she said. Natsu was even more puzzled now.

"What? Why're you laughing?"

"Seems I was more right than I thought when I called you flame-brain!"

"Natsu, today is Valentine's day" Mira smiled, in a display of her usual patience with Natsu's dense brain.

"Oh!" Natsu patted his forehead, then looked at Mira awaiting an explanation. "So, what is that?"

"You really don't know?" Gray was bewildered. "What, did Igneel have you living under a rock?"

"Don't you say a word about Igneel!" Natsu immediately sent a deadly glare his way. "Unless you wanna go at it."

Mira intervened before a fight could ensue. "I guess dragons don't worry a lot about human festivities... Natsu, Valentine's day is the day you use to show your affection to your friends, your family... or your special one. And you do that by giving them a gift."

"Oh? A gift? Like what?"

"Well, most people choose chocolates, as it's traditional" the bartender smiled. "But it can be anything you want. Many people seize this chance to... _confess_ their love for someone" she said the word _confess_ with some sort of special intent behind her tone, and her eyes moved towards Gray and Gajeel ever so briefly. "But it's just about making the day special for the people you care about, by showing them you love them. So I think that's what the girls over there are waiting for. A gift."

Gray averted her eyes, a conflicted expression on his face, and a low "tch!" could be heard from the table nearby. Natsu then looked at Lucy thoughtfully. Was she waiting for a gift, too? … But a gift from whom?

He remembered the conversation he'd had with Happy that morning.

"_Huh? You're going off by yourself? Where?"_

"_I want to buy a gift for Carla!" the blue cat said, lightly blushing._

"_A gift? Why?"_

"_Because I want her to know that I llliiiiike her!"_

Natsu had just shrugged it off as another one of Happy's numerous attempts at winning Carla's heart, but now he realized. So that's what it was about! Well, if Happy was going to give a gift, Natsu wasn't going to be less. Also, Lucy looked kind of sad and out of it today. Maybe a gift would cheer her up!

Having taken the decision, he stormed out of the guild and made his way through the streets of Magnolia, looking for the perfect gift for Lucy.

The question was, what?

He saw a chocolate shop right in front of him. Given the day it was, it was packed with people.

"Hmmmm" he hummed to himself, putting a finger to his mouth in a thoughtful manner. Well, Mira _did_ mention chocolate. Natsu knew Lucy had a sweet tooth, so chocolate would probably enlighten her.

Then again, chocolate didn't seem too special. Lucy ate chocolate every possible day, so it wouldn't be a gift out of the ordinary. And Natsu didn't want an ordinary gift. So he decided to keep looking.

As he passed through the shops, different ideas popped into his mind. He thought about baking her a cake when he passed before a bakery, but he had no idea how to make a cake, and even less how to make it look pretty; and the ones he saw in the shop were too expensive for his tight budget. He thought about buying her a dress of some sort, looking at a fancy clothes shop, but he wouldn't know what kind of dress Lucy liked, even less what size would fit her, and again, a dress would probably be too expensive. Besides, neither the cake nor the dress would be special. Not the kind of special he wanted, anyway.

He sighed with dismay and kept walking. He thought about giving her a quill for her to write with, a ribbon for her hair, flowers, a notebook, and hundreds of other little things that crossed his mind. He even saw Gajeel buying a book, and Gray buying a... _what even was that?_ Something that looked like a hat.

But none of those things were anything special! Natsu kicked the air with a growl. He couldn't give Lucy something ordinary!

With a deep, frustrated sigh, and a huge disappointment, he started making his way back to the guild. He walked with his eyes fixated on the ground and his hands in his pockets, kicking pebbles every now and then.

When entering the guild, he saw Lucy, now sitting by herself with the same absent eyes as before. He was infuriated with himself for not having found anything to give her. Regardless, he decided he should approach her.

"Hey, Luce."

She looked up at him when hearing her name, her eyes kind of surprised. Natsu thought he could see a glimmer of hope in them for a second, before she smiled at him. "Oh, hey, Natsu. Where have you been all day?"

"Well, you know..." he mumbled, then changed the subject. "Weren't you with Levy and Juvia? And Erza was here before too, right?"

"Ah" Lucy's smile, though still genuine, became strangely melancholic. "Gray and Gajeel came over to take them somewhere. And Jellal came in the guild as well. He practically swept Erza off her feet" she giggled. "And Evergreen yelled at Elfman a lot because he was late for their date, I think. So... yeah!" she sighed, then shook her head and smiled at him. "You never told me where you went, though."

Natsu clenched his fists. So he'd been the only one who'd failed to get a gift, huh. Nice going. "I..." he sighed, then sat beside her, deciding to tell her everything. "Lucy, I was trying to find a gift for you."

"What?" her chocolate eyes became bigger with surprise. "You... you were looking for a gift for _me_?" her cheeks quickly blushed pink. "B-but _why_?"

"Well... Mira explained to me what this Valentine's thing is, right? And everyone was getting gifts... and then I saw you and you looked so absent, kind of sad, you know? So I thought maybe a gift would cheer you up."

"Oh, Natsu" she seemed touched. "You didn't have to bother."

"No, I _wanted_ to!" he replied, firmly. "But then, I walked all through the city and found nothing I liked for you. I failed miserably!" he sighed, scratching his neck. "See, I didn't want to give you something normal. I couldn't give you an ordinary gift, Luce, because you're not ordinary."

That made her eyes open wide and her face blush harder. When he realized what he'd said, he even blushed himself. He averted his eyes from her and ran a hand through his hair in embarrassment. "So.. yeah" he mumbled. "I couldn't get you anything. I'm sorry, Luce."

She smiled, a warm, happy smile that lit up her face. The kind of smile Natsu always wanted her to have. "It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter at all" she said, shaking her head. Her cheeks were still pink, and her eyes sparkled. He could tell she was really happy right now, though he couldn't guess why. "It's intention what counts, you know."

"Yeah, but..." he was going to say something, but was stopped by the kiss she gave him. He put a hand to his cheek, baffled by the gesture. Even though the kiss had been so quick, he would still be feeling the touch of her lips in the way his skin tingled hours afterwards.

"Thank you, Natsu."


	2. Day Two: Vulnerable

**_STREET GANG AU. _**_Lucy Heartfilia was your typical rich, pampered heir until she ran away from home, escaping her boundaries, and ended up joining a merry, friendly street gang named Fairy Tail. She's a bit scared of them at first, but she soon learns they're good people at heart, and she finds in them the best friends she could ever have asked for. However, there's those who want to take away the happiness she's encountered; her father, first and foremost, but also other gangs, nowhere near as friendly as Fairy Tail._

* * *

The pain was sharp. There were sparks getting in the way of her vision, blood pulsing loudly in her brain. The world around her became a blurry confusion of sounds and screaming which only enhanced the agony further. Her ears were ringing.

Well, the headache was bound to be terrible when she'd just been punched in the head.

She fell to the floor, probably scraping her hands and knees in the process, but she didn't even feel it, so intense was the pain in her head. The punch had been strong and direct, and she, as opposed to her friends, was not used to receiving them. She wasn't given a chance to soften the impact, either.

"Damn it! LUCY!" she heard his voice amidst the confusion of sounds, and tried to see the source amidst the scintillating sparks. "How dare you, you _bastard_!"

Lucy tried to say something to stop him, but she was too slow. She heard the sounds of a fight ensuing. _No_, she wanted to say, _stop it_. She hadn't meant for any of this to happen.

If anything, she'd meant to prevent it.

When word spread about the gang known as Phantom Lord coming to the city, she knew they were coming for her. They knew who Lucy Heartfilia was, and it was obvious what they were searching for. Money. Money was always the motive. _Her_ money.

She tried to leave the gang, or as they liked to called, the _guild_, so they wouldn't get involved in this. She tried to leave to protect them, and that was the very reason she gave when they caught her right in the act. But they, her friends, refused to let her go. _You're a part of our family now_, they said. _So if they want to take you, they'll have to come through us first_. They had been so stubborn about it. She had grown to love them all so much.

She was supposed to be escorted to a safe place until Fairy Tail scared them off, or beat them to a pulp, or both. She protested, she didn't want to be coddled and protected behind them, while they sacrificed themselves for her. She didn't make it easy for Natsu to take her away from where the face-off was supposed to take place. Natsu had cursed and growled, but in the end, he was still way physically stronger than she ever would be, and he had the upper hand.

They were running away, Lucy kicking and protesting in Natsu's arms, he trying to hush her in case they would be caught. And then, one of the Phantom Lords appeared right before them.

His name was, apparently, Gajeel.

Natsu finally put Lucy down so he could have his hands free to fight, and glared at his _enemy_ with deadly intent. However, the blonde wasn't about to let that happen.

She'd stepped in front of the tall, bulky, pierced and scary-looking man, swallowing her fear, and extended her arms as though to protect Natsu, even though he wouldn't need her protection. "Don't harm my friends!" she'd yelled. She'd rather surrender herself than letting her dearest comrades be hurt for her sake. However, the man smiled, showing all of his teeth and making a scorny sound, something like "gehee". And the fist had flown right to her face.

"How cute, a little lass like that tryin'a stop me. Ya wouldn't happen to be the Heartfilia chick, would ya?"

And Natsu had yelled and ran right up to him, terribly enraged. Lucy had never seen him in such a fashion before. Natsu was always picking fights with other gangs, and with members of his own gang, but she had _never_ seen such burning rage, such fury and violence in him.

Even when she knew he was doing it to protect her, it was _scary_.

She covered her eyes not to see. She didn't want to see. What if Natsu got seriously hurt? She could _never_ forgive herself. If any harm came to him, or any of her friends because of her...

"Please..." she uttered among the tears, trembling, shaking. She didn't even know what she was asking for anymore.

The fight wasn't fast. It felt like ages for her. But the noises, the enraged screams, the masculine growling, the cursing, the sounds of punching and kicking and bodies falling, it all finally came to an end. But she dared not to look.

Footsteps came over to her, feet dragging over the cold paviment. Someone kneeled before her. "Lucy" the voice was weary, but it was _his_. She took her hands away from her face, allowing him to see her tears and the look of endless relief in her eyes.

"Natsu" she sobbed, throwing herself into his arms. He winced in pain, but still put an arm around her.

"Hey, careful there" he softly patted her head with his free hand. "You alright?"

"I should be asking you that, you know" she whimpered, burying her face in his shoulder. "I – I was so scared he would hurt you..."

"Heh. I'm not easy to beat, you know that" he smiled. "I wish I would've gotten you to safe haven in time, though" he frowned when he thought about what had happened to her. "To think that bastard dared to hit you..." his voice was low and aggressive, almost a growl.

"No" Lucy shook her head, biting her lower lip. "It was... all of it is my fault" she clenched her hands into fists, angered and frustrated. "The Phantom Lords attacking was my fault, and I can't even do anything to help you guys, nothing but staying at the sidelines and watch. I just... I'm a burden to you all."

"Hey, hey" Natsu quickly interrupted her. He grabbed her shoulders to make her look at him. "Luce, it's not true that you don't help us. We know you're no fighter. Your real strength" he lightly poked her forehead with his index finger. "is right here. Your wits have helped us out a lot, you know. And if we protected you, it's because we want you to stay, because you're part of the family, right?"

His smile was so bright, so warm. It was instantly uplifting. Lucy sighed. "Yeah. I know. It's just... I wish I wasn't so... so vulnerable."

Natsu shrugged. "Well, everyone's vulnerable at times, right? Besides..." he scratched the back of his neck, and avoided looking at her directly. "When you're in danger, or threatened, or hurt... I just..." he seemed to have trouble finding the words to explain whatever he wanted to say. Lucy held her breath in expectancy. It was rare to see Natsu... this serious. "I just want to _kill_ whatever is hurting you, or threatening you. If something bad happens to you, Luce... I – I feel like I might go crazy."

Her eyes opened wide with bewilderment, and she felt blood rushing to color her cheeks. She thought she could even see a blush in _his_ cheeks, too. "So..." he cleared his throat. "I guess you could say that, in a way... your vulnerability makes me stronger. Because I want to – uh, protect you. Or something."

"Or something?" she snorted, covering her mouth to suppress laughter. He pouted, the blush on his cheeks intensifying.

"Wh-whatever!"

"I love you, too" she meant to say it in a joking way, but it came out much more _serious_ than she expected. She quickly cleared her throat, trying to conceal her flushed face, and added: "Or something."

Natsu laughed, pulling her into a hug and ruffling her hair. "Yeah. Or something."

Sometimes, it was really so hard to draw the line, where their friendship ended and _something else_ began. But it reassured Lucy, to think they had plenty of time to figure it out.

Because, as a member of Fairy Tail, she was staying. For good.

* * *

_**This one's my second favourite, I think. The last, fluffy scene seems a bit off from the general line of the oneshot, but I loved writing it and I decided it should stay.**_


	3. Day Three: Ribbon

_**Out of every fanfic I wrote for this week, this one's totally my favourite. I hope it's yours, too.**_

* * *

Natsu had noticed her on the first day, when they began university. She was blonde, with big brown eyes and fair skin. His first thought was that she was cute. She wore pretty clothes, suited for a first day, and, tying a little side ponytail, there was a ribbon on her hair.

Then, they bumped into each other in the hallways. Constantly. They didn't have the same classes, but their rooms neighbored each other almost every hour of the day, so there were plenty of chances for them to meet. She often walked so distracted, she would bump into his shoulder and drop her papers in the most cliché way possible. After many times of helping her pick up her papers and sneaking a peek at some fictional thing she was writing, they finally introduced themselves.

"Natsu Dragneel" he smiled, offering her his hand to lift her up.

"Lucy Heartfilia" she mumbled, taking it. That was how they became acquaintances.

And every day, she wore a ribbon on her hair.

"Hey" one day, they were walking together to their next classes, and he decided to ask her something. "How come I've never seen you around with anyone other than me?"

She blushed, looked away from him and mumbled something incoherent about _lack of social life_. Well, the girl _was_ shy, he had noticed that. So, he grinned. "Hey, why don't you come with me today after class? I'll introduce you to something cool!"

"Huh?" she blinked, and he could tell she was unsure. But she decided to swallow her insecurities, and nodded. "Okay, then."

After class, she still wore that ribbon on her hair.

Natsu took her to his fraternity, Fairy Tail. Well, to tell the truth, it wasn't an "actual" fraternity. With the help of one of the teachers, Makarov Dreyar, they had rented an empty building in the university grounds and made a place for their _huge_ group of friends (most of them knew each other since childhood) to hang out. They partied, drank, studied, and some even lived there. It was... it was like a safe haven for them. A place where they knew they would be accepted and where there could seek help if they needed it; a place that would always be there, no matter what. Their connection, a friendship that was almost family-like, was deeper than that of any fraternity to ever exist. That's what Natsu tried to make her understand while they walked there, and showed her their "mark", the tattoo that showed where they belonged, Fairy Tail's symbol.

She seemed fascinated, and excited with the possibility of meeting such interesting, great people. Yeah, Natsu thought. They were all very nice... Even though Fairy Tail was infamous for their parties going... _too_ wild.

The _new girl_ adapted to Fairy Tail surprisingly quick. She was so fun, amiable and likeable, it wasn't difficult for the members to get attached to her. A few weeks after, it felt like she'd always been there. She told him it was _amazing_, and that she'd never felt so loved and accepted in her life, except back when her mother was alive. That slip of tongue caused her to become sad and shy for some hours, until Natsu told her about her own father, who had mysteriously disappeared years ago. When she asked about his mother, she was baffled to know that he had none that he knew of, and that the members of Fairy Tail had been the only family he'd known since.

After that, she seemed to feel better, knowing that he could understand her grief.

She got a tattoo of her own. She had come and eagerly shown it to Natsu, giggling like a schoolgirl and saying her father would kill her if he knew about it.

That was how they became friends. Close friends.

Every afternoon when they met at Fairy Tail, he always saw the ribbon on her hair.

She often wore the same side-ponytail he saw on the first day. Sometimes, she tied her hair up in two ponytails, or in one atop of her head. But there was always a ribbon there. She hardly ever wore her blond hair completely down. And when she did, Natsu always asked her where the ribbon was.

She had ribbons in plenty of colours. She matched them with her clothes. For some reason, Natsu's favourite was the blue one. Maybe because she was wearing that one when she first arrived to Fairy Tail. He would never admit he had a favourite, though. He didn't want to recognize that he spent a long time staring at her and taking in every little detail.

They spent a lot of time together, of course. They were friends, so it was only normal. At first, it was just talking in the hallways and hanging out in Fairy Tail. With time, Lucy often invited him (or, more likely, he invited himself) over to her apartment, and they would watch movies, have dinner, play some stupid videogame, or simply talk.

They grew very, very close to each other. To the point Natsu started getting _jealous_ when she spent her time with other people. Mostly, other _guys_. Especially Gray.

He had no reason to get jealous, though. She was his friend. His best friend. That's all.

Okay, maybe that wasn't all. Maybe Natsu caught himself staring into her eyes too often. Maybe he found himself seizing every opportunity he had to ruffle her hair or grab her hand or pull her into a hug. Maybe his eyes scanned the curves her body displayed in all the right places too often. Maybe when they snuggled together in her bed to watch a movie his mind wondered how it'd feel to hover over her body and kiss her.

Maybe he wanted to see her every morning, putting that ribbon on her hair.

One day, they were playing a videogame. One of those where you pick a character and fight. And it was her fifth win in a row. Natsu wanted to blame it on how distracted he was that day. He felt more nervous than normal. His heart thumped louder, and he was much more conscious of how close she was. She threw her hands up in the air when the TV screen displayed a "PLAYER ONE WINS", laughing.

"Yay! I won! I won again!" she beamed. It was too cute. Such a big, childish grin on her face, such a spark in her eyes. _The idiot_. She mischievously stuck out her tongue at him, in friendly mockery.

He seized the moment to trap her into a kiss.

He hadn't planned for it to happen, honestly. But he just couldn't hold it back. During the kiss, he felt nothing but her wonderful warmth and the softness of her humid mouth beneath his. When it ended, though, insecurity ate at him. Had he just ruined the friendship they'd taken so long to build, one, if not the most precious of his relationships? However, when he looked into her eyes, into the colour of chocolate they had, he saw nothing but wonder. Wonder and, yes, love.

"Natsu" she uttered his name, which sounded like she barely could believe what just happened.

"I won this one" he grinned, burying his fingers in her blond hair to bring her closer.

That day, he untied the ribbon from her hair and asked her to tie it onto his wrist.

"But why?" she asked, while her fingers worked a knot.

"I just want to have it" he answered, smiling widely. "It's something about you that's been there since the day I saw you for the first time. It's special to me, Luce. Like you."

That day, Lucy had been wearing the blue ribbon.

Natsu never untied it from his wrist since.


	4. Day Four: Promise

He may have forgotten about it; he wasn't exactly known for having a good long-term memory (nor a good short-term one for that matter), so he may not recall. But Lucy did.

Lucy remembered each and every promise he'd made. Not all of them were _serious, life changing_promises, and though she didn't remember what the context had been for all of them, she simply remembered every time he'd said the words, and stored it in her head, for her to recall again and again.

_Yeah, I'll take you to Fairy Tail. Promise._

_We won't let anyone take you away from us, Lucy. I promise._

_I will protect you! I promise!_

_I'll be right here, Luce, I promise._

_We'll find it, I promise!_

_No one will steal Lucy's future! I promise!_

Even though he may not remember them, he had kept them all. Every single one. She knew Natsu would never break one, at least not one he made to her.

That's why she couldn't help crying tears of utter happiness when he said "I'll never leave, Luce. You're stuck with me forever" and pulled out a ring.

"I promise."

* * *

_**Sometimes short is better, right? **__**I had no real inspiration to write a promise based fic without it being extremely cliché.**_


	5. Day Five: Dare

Had she known what the consequences of playing "a harmless little game" would be, she would've said no, turned her back and immediately gone back home.

But it was way too late now, and if she had gotten up that instant and tried to leave, the others would've instantly hunted her down. There was no escape.

"So, Lucy, truth or dare?"

She didn't want to answer. She definitely didn't. She fidgeted in her seat, cheeks blushing and gross sweating in her armpits, and she wanted to protest. This was supposed to be a normal, relaxed party with friends! How had it become... like this? She should've guessed, though; Fairy Tail parties were never normal. She _knew_ she should've stayed at home tonight, but she'd let her friends drag her over.

(Rule number one of Lucy's Rulebook for Survival in Fairy Tail: _never_ let your friends drag you to a party. This rule is often broken due to Lucy's irrational faith that the party might not end in a mayhem of madness, but mostly due to her best friends' insistance and sheer force.)

The party had started out fine. She had fun, even, and she thought that, for once, she might go home without regretting having come. Well, not today, it seems.

Once people started having more than two drinks, things started getting wild. _Again_. It had been Cana's idea to play 'truth or dare', and many of them had, in a fit of intoxicated euphoria, agreed. Lucy had just drunk _one_ glass of the _least_ alcoholic drink they had, and yet, it was apparently enough to let herself be convinced by Levy and Cana's weak argumentations.

"Oh, come on, Lu-chan, it'll be fun!"

"It's just a harmless little game!"

A harmless little game that, so far, had left both Natsu and Gajeel naked except for underwear, Gray willing to make out _inside a closet _with Juvia, said Juvia passed out from sheer embarrassment, Levy a drunken mess, Cana crying from laughter, Wendy too afraid to speak, Erza completely unfazed after describing her sexual practices with Jellal...

Lucy didn't know who had suggested what anymore. All she knew was, that she was too embarrassed to describe with words, and that it was now her turn.

If she chose truth, Cana would probably ask her if she was a virgin, or if she touched herself, or the most indecent question that would come to her mind in the momentum. But, if she chose dare, who knew what kind of absurd, probably sexual and certainly _foolish_ thing she'd be asked to do. For example, Levy had to drink an entire bottle of wine by herself, hence why she was practically passing out on the floor after Mira had cleaned her vomit. And Natsu and Gajeel had to wrestle naked (which they gladly had done, very much to Lucy and Levy's horror) and then stay in their underwear the whole of the night. Lucy had a feeling everyone was taking the game _too_ seriously.

And now she was trapped.

She gulped, not knowing what to answer. What would be less denigrating? Probably truth. Many people there were either too drunk or too distracted to remember what she had answered, anyway. But then again, when Cana repeated the question ("We don't have all night, Lucy! Truth or dare?") everyone except poor Levy looked at her with intense curiosity. She cursed under her breath; she already hated being the center of attention, but even more so _now_.

"I..." she stammered, playing with a lock of her hair and trying to find a way to buy herself some time. "I... really don't think I want to play anymore..."

"Whaaa?" Cana glared, pointing at her with the bottle she was holding. "Are you gonna chicken out now? Come on! I promise we'll be gentle with you."

"B-but I..." she _definitely_ didn't want to play anymore. Cana's definition of 'gentle' didn't coincide with that of a dictionary, Lucy was certain. Her mind desperately searched for a way out. "I'll do it only if you're not the one to 'truth or dare' me!" she blurted out the only thing that came to her.

"Huh?" the brunette drunkard seemed surprised, but simply shrugged. "Ah, whatever, fine. So, who wants to challenge Lucy here?" she scanned the circle in search of someone sober enough for the task, and once found, she raised her eyebrows in invitation. "How about you, Natsu?"

Lucy sighed in relief. Natsu! He was safe haven. Whatever he could come up with, it surely would be _nowhere _near as bad as Cana's ideas. Lucy treasured her friendship, but honestly, Gildarts' daughter had absolutely no sense of shame.

"Okay, I'll do it" Natsu grinned widely. "Truth or dare?"

She felt way more confident with him, now; besides, she had no idea what kind of question he'd ask her, and she knew she wouldn't get away with lying. So she went with what seemed the safest option with the Dragon Slayer. "Dare."

She trusted he'd just make her do something stupid and be done with it. But the way he seemed to think long and hard about it, while looking at her intently with _those_ eyes, soon made her suspicious. She squinted at him with distrust. Cana started to get impatient, as well.

"The heck is taking you so long, Natsu!?"

"Can we just be done with this already?" Gajeel groaned, yawning.

"Yes, I'd like to go home, too" Erza muttered, thinking about the strawberry cake in her fridge.

"I've got it!" Natsu announced, a satisfied grin on his face, one of those that showed all of his teeth. He dragged his knees across the floor where he'd been sitting to get closer to Lucy.

"Well, what is it?" the blonde in question asked, suspicious of that smirk of his.

"I dare you to kiss me" he declared, making her fall back from her seat in surprise.

"WHAT!?" Lucy immediately felt her cheeks growing hot as Cana whistled and Gajeel laughed that sardonic laugh of his. _Gehee_.

Her eye gave a slight twitch. _Kiss _him!? Just what _was_ that!? "Y-you mean on the cheek, right!?"

"Nope" he puckered up his mouth and lightly patted it with his index finger. "Right here."

"EE-EEEHHH!?"

Well, talk about _unexpected_. She'd have bet all of her money to pay rent that Natsu would never have asked for such... such a thing! Heck, she never even thought he was aware that kissing was a _thing_! With that dense brain of his...

"Well, well, he might just not be as dense as I thought" Erza pondered,

"You gonna do it, Lucy?" Cana wiggled her eyebrows with a wide grin. "Or shall we call in Mira for punishment?"

Lucy shivered at the sole thought of having _Mira_ of all people find a punishment for not having gone through with the dare. But – but kissing Natsu! Even her _ears_ must be burning red by now.

She wasn't _completely_ opposed to the idea of kissing him, honestly – all things considered, it could've been much worse of a dare, and she kind of _liked_ Natsu. But there was _no way_ she was doing this in front of everyone, and no way she was going to admit she sort of had feelings for him _here_, and no way she was going to give her first kiss away to a stupid game! What on _Earthland_ was he even thinking? What could've possibly made him think _this_ was a good idea? What could possibly have made _her_ think it was a good idea to take part in it to begin with!?

(Rule number two of Lucy's Rulebook for Survival in Fairy Tail: never, _ever_ let your friends talk you into participating in drunken games. _Never ever again, not even in a gazillion years_.)

"T-there's no way I'm doing this! There's just _no way_!" she shrieked, turning her back to Natsu and covering her flushed, bashful face with both her hands and hair. She would've given everything she owned to have a hole open in the ground and swallow her – wait.

She frantically searched in her key pouch and - "Yes! Open, gate of the Virgin, Virgo!" she commanded, and the pink-haired maid appeared through a flash of light.

"Is it time for punishment, princess?"

"Maybe, but _not_ for me!" Lucy quickly jumped into her spirit's arms. "Just – just dig a hole and get me out of here!"

"Hey, Lucy, that's cheating!" Cana's protest fell into deaf ears, and both Virgo and Lucy disappeared into a hole that magically closed down after them.

"Geez, there was no need to run away" Natsu mumbled, right before he fell on his back. "She could've just said n - whoa, why's the room spinning?"

Erza walked up to him and noticed his flushed cheeks and his eyes slightly out of focus. Her own eye twitched when she noticed.

"Natsu, you're completely drunk, aren't you?"

"Wha? Uhhh... Not that much, I swear..."

"How dare you ask Lucy to kiss you when you're in such a state!?" Titania growled, pulling out a sword. A dark aura Natsu knew all too well emanated from her, and he gulped in fear. "If anyone here is deserving of punishment, that's _you_."

* * *

_**Yeah, I suck at comedy, you don't have to say it.**_


	6. Day Six: Effulgence

**_effulgence_**_, noun: [from Latin 'fulgere', to shine] a brilliant radiance; brightness taken to the extreme._

* * *

When he was young, Natsu had seen a fairy.

No one believed him, of course. The mages at the guild had barely even listened, dismissing it as a child's normal fantasies. Not even Lisanna, his best friend, had believed when he told her.

"Liar! Fairies don't exist!" she said, laughing. "And even if they did, they wouldn't show themselves to you!"

"She's right" her older sister, the terrible Mirajane, interfered with a sneering grin on her face. "You'd probably scare 'em off with that face of yours."

"That's not true! I did see her!" Natsu replied, clenching his hands into fists. "I even _talked_ to her!"

"Describe her, then" Lisanna dared. He stopped to think for a moment.

"She was small like me" he said, putting a hand to his head to indicate she was about his same height. "And very pretty."

"That could be anyone!" the white-haired child snorted, shaking her head. "Don't say lies like that, Natsu. You know it makes your nose grow bigger!"

He touched his nose with his fingers, suddenly afraid. But he still frowned at her. "It's not a lie" he muttered, pouting his lips.

It wasn't, really.

He'd met with a girl about his same height when he was crossing the forest near Magnolia. He was taken aback, because she was indeed very pretty.

She stared at him in surprise, her eyes wide open. They were brown, and her hair was blond, and her skin was fair and pretty. But she was wearing... a weird dress.

"What's that?"

"What?" she looked at where he was pointing at, and raised her eyebrows. "Um, a dress?"

"That doesn't look like any dress I've seen" he replied, pointing his hand at the lace, the ribbons and fluffy skirts that covered the little girl's body.

"Hmmm" she seemed to think for a moment, then smiled mischievously. "Well, that's only normal if you're a human."

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. The girl giggled.

"You see, this is fairy clothing" she seemed very amused. "I'm a fairy!"

"What?!" Natsu's mouth hung open. "You're serious? Like... like a _real_ fairy?"

"Well, duh" she laughed. "At least I think I'm pretty real!"

"That's awesome!" he blurted, jumping in excitement. "And you live here!?"

"Yeah" she nodded, that naughty smile still curving her lips. "I assume you must be from the human city nearby, then."

"Uh-huh" Natsu smiled in satisfaction. "You know, people there call me and my family fairies, too."

"Oh?" she tilted her head to her right with curiosity.

"Yeah! Because we're from a guild called Fairy Tail!"

"You're a mage?" her eyes glimmered with excitement. "I can use magic too!"

"Well, you're supposed to, dummy. You're a real fairy after all!" this time, it was his turn to laugh.

"I – I guess you're right" she blushed, just a tiny little bit, but he was too busy wanting to explain his own magic to pay any mind to it.

"But I use Dragon Slayer magic. My father taught me! He was a dragon!"

"Really?" her petite mouth formed a perfect _O_ shape.

"Of course! His name was Igneel, the fire dragon!"

"That's amazing!"

Natsu puffed out his chest with pride. "I know, right?" he grinned widely. "So, what's your name?"

"I'm Lucy. Lucy Heartfilia" she offered him her hand to shake with a gentle smile.

"Natsu Dragneel" he introduced himself, gripping her small hand with his own.

They started walking around the forest. Lucy showed him to the "fairy circles", which were nothing but mushrooms growing in the shape of a circle. She explained that there was where her people danced and played music at night. Natsu was fascinated by the tales she told. At the same time, he told her about the guild, the fun they had, the great deeds they would surely accomplish one day, and the marvelous strength of the mages there. He also seized the chance to brag about his own magic and show her a few small tricks with fire, even though she was fretting over the chance that he'd burn the forest.

"Hey" Natsu asked her once, when they were sitting over a clearing of soft grass. "Do fairies have tails?"

Lucy giggled. "That's a secret!"

"Oh, come on" he groaned in protest. It was then when he realized that the sun was setting. People at the guild were probably worried, as he hadn't told anyone where he was going and he'd been out the whole afternoon. "Wow, it's already this late!? I'm sorry, Lucy, I have to go!"

"Yeah, I should get going too. Papa is probably getting worried!" she then grabbed Natsu's hand into hers, biting her lips. "Hey, Natsu" he thought he could see her cheeks going pink, but with the dim light of sunset, it was hard to tell. "You won't forget me, will you?"

"Huh? Of course not! I'd never forget one of my friends" he replied, smiling widely at her. She smiled back, nodding.

"Someday, I'll leave the forest and join that guild of yours!"

"Of course you will! And I'll be there to welcome you" he beamed. "And I'll be the strongest Dragon Slayer ever by then!"

"I'm sure you will" she laughed, and let go of his hand. "Bye, Natsu."

"See you soon, Lucy!"

No one believed him when he said he'd seen a fairy, but that didn't really matter that much to him. He had been so very convinced, then.

But as the years passed, his conviction wavered. To tell the truth, he had no proof that the little girl had really been a fairy; in reality, she seemed just like a normal girl. Her weird dress had thrown him off, then, but as he grew and got to widen his horizons and his knowledge of new places, he realized it was nothing but a normal dress. As he grew, he realized the things he should've realized then... but he was too young to notice. She was too young to care. She had been a mischievous little girl, tricking an innocent boy into thinking she was a fairy. Then again, she'd probably thought he was lying when he said his father had been a real dragon... but still! He felt a little bit betrayed, and the memory of her nagged him at the most unexpected moments.

It was nagging him, that he actually wanted to see her again, even after the prank she played on him.

Even so, he recalled that there was _something_ about her. Something that had made him believe her without hesitation when she declared being a fairy. Only now, he couldn't recall what it had been exactly.

When she found him, Natsu didn't recognize her.

What he saw was a cute blonde, a grown, tall girl saying hi and thanking him for breaking a love spell that an impostor Salamander was wearing on a ring, and then...

"Do fairies have tails?" she said, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

His eyes opened wide, and he grinned widely, his signature grin that showed all of his teeth.

"That's a secret."

"I wouldn't know, though" she giggled, an apologetic look in her eyes.

"Oh, I guessed as much" he shrugged, the smile still playing on his mouth.

"I'm sorry I played that prank on you. I just... I didn't think you'd actually believe me" she played with a lock of her blond hair. "Since I don't look... I'm not a fairy at all."

"Oh? But you're going to become one soon" he showed her the red guild mark on his shoulder, mark that she, soon, would be able to show off as well. "A real Fairy."

He remembered now, what it was that had made him believe her so easily. She was beaming at him now, happiness litting up her whole face, and she had such an effulgence in her eyes that, even now, Natsu would've believed that she was, in fact, a fairy.

* * *

_**Initially, I wanted an 'Urano Metria'-based fic, because that spell was the first thing that came to mind when I read the prompt. But I couldn't find a suitable, good, non-battle based scenario for what I wanted to write, so I decided to go for a little cuteness that doesn't really reflect the concept of 'effulgence', but that I somewhat found suitable for it.**_


	7. Day Seven: Future

future: [noun] _what will happen to someone or something in the time that is to come_

* * *

Lucy had been thinking a lot about the future lately.

Of course, not in the same way she used to, when she was young, back when her mother was still alive and everything about her life was perfection and sunshine and rainbows. She used to think she would grow up to inherit her papa's estate and fortune, dress like a princess every day and, in the meanwhile, become a great Celestial mage like her mama. And perhaps marry a wealthy and handsome prince who would treat her like the princess she was. And they'd live happily ever after, like in her books.

She sighed. No, definitely not in that same way. Besides, her dreams had changed... quite radically since then.

Natsu and her had been... a _thing_ for some, what, two, three years? Ever since the defeat of Tartaros. Ever since they'd suffered the fear of losing each other for the umpteenth time. That fear had become relief, when the last of their enemies had kissed the ground. And the hug they'd shared had become a hungry kiss before they even realized what they were doing. Since then...

To be honest, not a lot had changed for them. It had taken a long time for the guild to recover from the harsh experience, but of course they came out victorious, as always, and Fairy Tail was as rowdy and merry as ever. The mages had resumed, or at least tried to resume their normal lives, as if Tartaros had been just a bad dream. Obviously enough, the darkest of guilds had left its mark on many of them; a mark like the nightmares that would wake Lucy in the middle of the night, crying and screaming, from time to time. She had almost overcome them now, but still, even when years passed, she would still wake up from time to time, trembling and frantically seeking Natsu with her hands.

Because, yes, he slept in her bed _every night_ now. And he'd been the one to comfort her and dry her sweat and tears.

Actually, most of the time, they behaved as if nothing had ever happened between them, as if that first kiss had never been. They were close friends, as always. But from time to time, Natsu would put an arm around her wrist and bring her close, or hug her, or unexpectedly kiss her _in front of everyone_, which embarrassed Lucy to no end (though she never managed to blabber her complaints quite clearly). And, when they were alone... her face flushed red and she shook her head, struggling not to remind herself of the heated closeness and the intense sensations.

Well, the most logical assumption would obviously be that they were going out. Boyfriend and girlfriend. A couple. Lovers.

He even took her out on _dates_, for Celestial King's sake.

But, then again, Natsu never asked her out. He never said the words. He just displayed his affection whenever he felt like it, and took hers whenever she returned it, and dragged her out with the sole sentence "Let's go do THIS RANDOM THING, Luce! It'll be fun!". He just seemed to go along with it, with whatever it was his heart asked of him, like he did with everything else. It wasn't that she didn't like this... arrangement, whatever it was they had. It wasn't that she didn't _want_ it. She was comfortable with him, and she... (why bother denying it) yeah, she loved him.

What bothered her was, she didn't know what to expect of this, or what _he_ expected, or wanted, from it. She didn't know what _future_ she and Natsu would have. She didn't know what was the future he wanted for this – this sort of a relationship.

She wanted to ask him _what they were_, or what he _thought_ they were. But, when they were together, she could never muster up the courage to talk about it; and when she thought she could, she was always interrupted by his demanding lips or his big hand taking her somewhere.

As long as she was unsure whether he was – he was _committed_ in some way to her or not, she couldn't think about a future -whether long or short term future- with him. She was too afraid of taking this too seriously, and afraid of getting hurt in the end. It also worried her to think that it could end up just _not working_, like it didn't work with all her previous sorry attempts at a boyfriend. She loved Natsu, she _did oh so much_, and she feared she was already in too deep to let go – but she wanted to be sure that he loved her back, in the same way. They needed to talk about it, so she wouldn't have to worry about _that_ aspect of the future anymore.

That was it! Tonight, when he came over – because he sure as heck would – she'd speak to him before he had the time to react. It was the only way to approach serious business with that airhead. Decision taken, she darted up from her seat and rushed to the bathroom, so she could take her usual bubble bath before he showed up and tried to take a peek like the pervert he was.

As expected, when she was just done having dinner and was pouring herself a cup of tea to top it off, a pink-haired young man rushed in through the door. It still felt strange, to not have him use the window, but after he insisted on coming in night after night and the landlady questioned her about the strange man climbing over to the window, Lucy had no choice but to give up and give him a spare key.

"Lucy!" he chanted, signature wide grin on his face, as he came forward intending to wrap her into a hug.

"Stop right there!" she extended her palms and put them against his chest, barely managing to stop his rush. He gave her a confused and half-hurt expression, so damn _cute_ it made her heart skip a beat, and her conviction waver. But no! She couldn't hesitate now, and his pouty eyes wouldn't make her! She shook her head and stared at him with seriousness. "Natsu, I need to talk to you. About... about something."

"Huh?" he blinked, not understanding what on Earthland could be so important to forbid him from hugging her voluptuous, pleasantly warm and nicely scented body. "Well, talk, then!" he crossed his arms, with an annoyed pout on his face. "And make it quick."

Lucy sighed, mustering her courage. "It's just... I've been wondering, and... well, since you never really asked me – asked me out, I mean, I..." no good, there was no way on Earthland he'd be able to get anything out of this blabbering mess of words. Her cheeks and ears blushed, realizing the nonsense she was saying, but once her mouth started speaking, she couldn't seem to stop herself. "And I just wanted to know if – if, well, if you... if we are..."

"Lucy" Natsu interrupted her, touching her shoulder with his hand. "You know I'm not understanding a thing, right? Will you calm down and tell me what's wrong?"

And there he was, being all soft and nice and understanding. It'd be easier if she could get angry at him, she thought; it was much easier to get her point across when she was too enraged to think of what she was saying. But she could never _really_ get angry at him.

"I just..." she groaned in frustration, and stared right into his eyes, fighting off her hesitation. "What _are_ we, Natsu!?"

He seemed surprised to hear that question, and at first she thought he hadn't understood what she meant. Then, he grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her, warmly.

"I thought it was clear" he murmured, when he broke apart. "I'm sorry, Luce. I should've known you'd be too dense to notice."

"Wha – hey!" she protested, lightly punching his chest. He laughed, ruffling her hair.

"Seriously, though – you know what you are to me. You're my best friend, you're my support, and you're my girlfriend" he grinned, widely, and there was not even a hint of blush in his cheeks. Lucy envied him, how he could be so open without getting embarrassed, while she was afraid she'd die right then from the sudden blood rush to her head. "If you'll take me, of course."

"You're _such_ an idiot" she muttered, covering her face with her hands to hide her blush and the enormous smile that threatened to spread all over her lips.

"Oh, I'm sorry, would you rather be my fiancée? I can do that, too" he was just starting to get down on one knee when Lucy threw a pillow straight at his face.

"IDIOT!" she squealed, then broke into a giggling fit, covering her mouth with both her hands.

"Oh, throwing pillows, are ya?" Natsu peeked over the thrown object, a menacingly naughty glimmer in his eyes. "This calls for... punishment!"

"Aaah – no!" Lucy giggled, scurrying away from him, bed sheets getting in her way. "Go away, idiot, idiot – GYAH!" she gasped as she was grabbed from behind, prevented from escaping. "Naatsuuu!" she squealed, and felt his fingers creeping over her sides. "AH, DON'T -" she started laughing loudly and squirming, trying to get away. Pinned down against the bed, she was an easy prey for his merciless tickling.

"When will you learn?" Natsu laughed along, covering her sweet face in kisses. Lucy snickered and protested, trying to push him away by putting her fingers to his face, but he simply kissed them as well. "You can never win against me!" he got up over the bed and posed in a victorious stance, with both his fists raised. "I AM THE UNBEATEN KING OF THE APARTMENT!" by then, she was laughing so hard, her abdomen started to hurt.

And Lucy knew that _this_ was the only future she wanted.

* * *

_**This one had me quite satisfied. I feel it's a bit inconsistent - but what I wanted, regardless.**_

_**This was the last day, and the last prompt, therefore, this is the last oneshot.**_

_**I hope this was enjoyable for all of you. Thanks for reading!**_


End file.
